Miss Mac

You don't have to lie, but you don't have to tell everything you know. Benjamin Franklin said,

"To whom thy secrets thou doest tell, to him thy freedom thou doest sell."

My psych appointment (which was just a half hour face to face interview about family and medical history and my willingness to comply) was separate from my other appointments.

After all the appointments were done, my compliance packet was sent in on the Thursday before Thanksgiving and approved on the Monday before Thanksgiving. My surgery was schedule for the next available date which was December 23rd (2013).

I have been fartin' around with this for a few minutes. If I log in through Facebook, I come back with my 3,469 posts and my Betty Boop picture. I may never post a current picture because of a mean ol' rotten ex whom I don't want to find me.

Good for you! Professionally, she should not have asked. Everywhere I have worked, it would have meant a trip to the Principal's office (or HR)

Just to follow-up on my comment #3........Indeed I was taking 80 grams of Protein by that time, and have stayed there. At 2 1/2 years out, my hair is healthier than it has ever been.

Here is my favorite thread in this forum. We share 1,321 reasons for following through with bariatric surgery. For me it was a stroke that convinced me I did not have time for another diet to fail.

The lifestyle changes that come with surgery are a better option for me that dying an early death like so many other obese people in my family. Hopefully it will give you some encouragement and show you that you are not in this fight alone.

http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/219831-what-was-your-final-straw-that-broke-the-camels-back/?hl=%20final%20%20straw

You could say, "Thanks for your concern. Now let's talk about YOUR weight!"

Good move sitting with the kids.

My biggest one gave me some grief for about the first month, but only if I tried to do too much. I did not need anything for the pain past my second day home. The smaller ones did not bother me at all except for the itch.

I am 2 1/2 years out, and right there with you about logging your intake. I find that I have the best success when I weigh, measure and log. When I don't, it only takes me a couple of days to run off the rails. My tablespoon of Peanut Butter becomes six tablespoons of Peanut Butter heaped on one spoon.

One of the basic principles of scientific research is that you cannot control that which you do not measure. The bariatric doctor told me one time to stay off of the scale for a month. I gained ten pounds! So, now I weigh every day.

I did not experience hair loss at all, but my nails turned to shreds. I was taking 20,000 mg of Biotin. It wasn't until I started having either bone-broth Soup or sugar free Jello every day that they started to come back to normal. That is because of the Gelatin content.

The problem lasted through months 2,3,and 4 and then cleared up. My skin was dryer during that time, too, and I was moisturizing all the time.

HR is going to have to help you navigate through this. It sounds like your boss is not flexible about doctor appointments or medical testing either. The good news is that she cannot legally press you for info. Take everything through HR first.

I went from 44D to 38B.

My shoe size went from 9 Wide to 8 1/2 narrow.

My ring size went from 9 to 7.

My socks went from diabetic roomy ones to regular ladies socks.

Knowledge is power. You would be surprised at the number of people who approach the forum with a new tummy and no idea what to eat or how to manage a proper healing process. Welcome to the forum. Opinions and tact will vary, but we mean well.

Instead of losing who you are, you will discover who you are. Weight loss shrinks your belly, not your sense of humor. Most of our bariatric teams include access to a psychologist who can help us navigate through the mental and emotional changes that come with a shape we are not familiar with.

You don't have to eat healthy food. You get to eat healthy food. You will no longer be a slave to the processed food industry and their marketing machine. Their stuff is not really food anyway. They produce factory edibles full of chemicals and pesticides. With you new high Protein lifestyle, your body will thrive instead of just exist under reduced circumstances.

You don't have to exercise. You will be in a new body the enables you to exercise. The human body is built to move. That is why we have arms and legs and muscles and joints. We were not meant to become part of the sofa, but that is what our excess weight has done to us,

You will get to re-invent yourself. You may be shy now, but when you lose weight, you gain confidence. When someone gives you are hard time about your body or medical choices, you will either want to educate them or cold-konk them. But you won't take it any more and hide behind your weight with shame.

Although it may be painful, people can't keep their opinions to themselves and they will expose how they really think of you. That's when you realize that you may indeed have to adjust your circle of friends or distance yourself from toxic family who would rather see you fail than be thinner, happier and healthier than they are.

Chirp up. You can ditch the spiral of despair and grief for the old you and accept the challenge and adventure of creating the best you that you are supposed to be.

Are you familiar with the comedienne Lisa Lampanelli? She got sleeved a couple of years ago and is just as funny as she ever was.

You have already had your surgery and may as well hang on for the ride.

By the way, the discomfort and nausea will go away. Before you know it, you will be at your one year anniversary and wonder where the time went.

Stalls are like lovers. Your first will probably not be your last.

"Thank you for your concern. Now let's talk about YOUR weight."

I tried the essential oil concoction in response #3. The fennel smell overpowers all of the others. I suppose that would not be so bad if I like black licorice, but I don't. I smell like black licorice all day if I use that stuff (usually a dab on each wrist).

I also tried the roasted fennel. I ate it because I bought the stuff and cooked it, but won't do that again.

Anyway, if you like licorice, the essential oils might be a solution for you.

The original post shows up on the general forum page, so I am going to chime in. My sleeve was my 12th surgery which included two knee replacements, two c-sections, and a gallbladder surgery back when they still cut you half in two. The sleeve by far was the easiest recovery of all.

The two days in the hospital and the first two days home were kind of lousy with discomfort, but I did not need any pain relief after the third day.

Since I have been thrown away twice, I understand where you are coming from. Sometime's you will just get sick and tired of being strong, but we are here to support you.

For sure, don't blame his debauchery on your surgery. When I found out my first husband of 23 years was cheating, it turns out he had taken several girlfriends over the years, and the one I found out about was at least the tenth. Yeah, this did not just happen with your surgery. He has been bringing someone else's germs home to you for a while.

Protect yourself legally. Many counties have free legal aid for women who have been abandoned by their spouses...especially if there are kids involved. What hurt me the most was that on Father's day, two months after the girls and I left, they bought him a coffee mug that said "World's Greatest Dad".......and he helped them pack because he couldn't get rid of us soon enough.

Divorce is messy, but he has done you a favor by showing his stripes now. It is better to know how someone really feels about you rather than going through life wondering where you stand with them.

With your surgery you will get to re-invent physically. With the divorce, you will get to re-invent yourself mentally. What will you watch on TV because he is not controlling the remote? What will you fix to eat without having to cook his favorite junk foods? What will you do for fun without him making that decision for you? What kind of music will you listen to? What will you wear without his influence on your style? Who will you be when you just get to be you?

I wet from being Daddy's little girl to J'''''s long-suffering submissive wife to G""""s punching bag. After my second divorce, I took a couple of years off to find myself. I had to know who I was when I was left to follow my own heart. Then.....I was able to find a loving gentle man who treats me like the king of his universe. We have been together ten years and my grandchildren love him like a grandpa.

Your situation is stink cabbage now, but will be roses by the time you have adjusted. At some point you will be done crying and be able to proceed as the new independant you. Hugs from Miss Mac. Keep us informed.

I make something similar to that and add cut up deli turkey. That combination of flavors are awesome. You are so right.

My insurance required a Bariatric Center of Excellence. That would help narrow your search. My surgery was at a university teaching hospital where my surgeon developed the bariatric program and teaches bariatric and robotic surgery. It sounds like both of your options are university hospitals. That's a good start.

I was already retired when I had my surgery, but I would not have felt like going back to any job at one week. Keep in mind that surgery brutalizes a major organ and you just plain need time to snap back.

At one week you may be on full liquids and still maybe a week away from purees. I started soft foods at 2 1/2 weeks, and progressed to regular cooked foods as tolerated at one month.

At one week you can expected to be exhausted at the slightest effort. If you do return to work, don't plan on doing anything when you get back home. You will probably just want to go straight to bed.

Take two weeks - more if you can get it.

This is a list of the many many comorbidities that are recognized by the U S Dept of Health and Human Services. I don't know why you were told that only the top four qualify. I am also attaching an edited copy of a letter I submitted to BCBS Federal that was included with the packet from the bariatric surgeon. Use it for inspiration if you need to. By the way, I claimed 20 of those comorbidities with a 40.6 BMI. I am retired V. A. My packet was submitted on a Thursday and approved that next Monday. BCBS approved a five-day stay although only two days were needed.

http://www.dsfacts.com/qualifying-for-weight-loss-surgery.php

Obesity Comorbidities

To follow is a list of comorbidities (additional conditions or diseases) related to obesity which may help you in qualifying for weight loss surgery.

• Family history of heart disease
• Family history of stroke

Copy of REQUEST FOR APPROVAL FOR WEIGHT LOSS SURGERY.docx

I could almost guarantee that if you asked one of your challengers to tell you everything they know about bariatric surgery, it would take them about ten seconds.

Not all overweight people live in the U. S. If you lived in Mexico you would probably get your surgery in Mexico. I have not seen anything about all Mexican bariatric patients in Mexico not making it home.

If you lived in Latvia, you could get your surgery in Latvia. If you lived in Spain you could get it done in Spain. The same goes for Israel, Belgium, Turkey, the U.K., Germany, etc. You might be surprised that Thailand is actually the number one place for Medical Tourism.

I gained 12 pounds in the hospital, from IV liquids. It took me two weeks to lose that and get back to where I started. Then I hit the dreadful third week stall and stayed there for two weeks. Then finally the weight started coming off.